A Broken Troop
by Robot Wolf 26Z
Summary: A tie in to Strung Out. What happens when one of the Fireside Girls in placed in the Hospital due to an unforeseen accident? Will the Troop be able to keep together, or will they just fall apart? And what of the serial killer that's on the loose? Rated T. It's a good idea to also read Strung Out because there will be references to it.
1. Chapter 1

**Since I am too bored to think of an amusing Disclaimer, here we go: Don't own anything, blah,blah,blah, Belongs to Swampy, Dan and Disney.**

He never saw fear in her eyes until today. He never saw her break. He never heard her cry. She had always been so strong. But today she just fell apart. Now she just sat there mutely, her eyes fixated in the white wall.

"Isabella," he said gently, her head jerked up at his voice.

Her eyes were puffy and hair was tangled. when she spoke to him next her voice was low and raspy.

"What?" She asked.

"Did you?" He couldn't even complete his question.

"No, I can't bring myself to do it," She replied softly.

"Isabella?" A voice from down the hall called.

"Ginger?" Isabella Flynn looked over at the Japanese woman, whom like her mother before was now a doctor at Danville Marshal Hospital.

There was sorrow in her eyes. She glanced down at her clipboard and really wished it wasn't the familiar name. A woman she was so familiar with. A fellow former Fireside Girl.

"She's not doing well Isabella," Ginger Tindjer spoke softly.

"But she'll make it won't she?" Isabella inquired.

"It's too early to tell, but right now it doesn't look good," Ginger responded, unsure how to react to her old but very well loved leader's breakdown.

"We can't lose her Ginger, we can't," Isabella murmured quietly.

"Have you told the others?" Ginger asked.

"Yes, they'll be here within an hour," Isabella responded.

"You girls need to stick together on this. I am going to see if I can get ahold of him," Phineas Flynn said standing up, leaving the two former Fireside Girls to lean on each other in this time of crisis.

**Ooooh got your attention now don't I? Anyone care to guess who it is?**


	2. Chapter 2

Gretchen Fletcher was the first to arrive out of the other former Fireside Girls. Her chestnut hair was a mess. She seemed to have slept in her clothes, again. She still had her lab ID clipped to her belt loop. Her blue eyes were semi-bloodshot.

"Chief," She said quietly and her voice was soothing to Isabella.

"You came from work didn't you?" Isabella inquired as she caught Gretchen trying to stifle a yawn.

"Yeah," Gretchen admitted, "And no I am not going home as long as I don't know what is happening to our friend."

"How long have you been working on that case?" Isabella asked.

"It has been a month since we found that last body," Gretchen muttered, as she sat down next to Isabella's right. The position which it was never odd to see the two women sitting in.

"No progress?"

"Unfortunately, no."

With that statement Gretchen slunk back in her chair. While staring at the ceiling and waiting for the others to arrive, she fell asleep.

Phineas returned to see the two women sitting there, one asleep and the other staring at the floor. Phineas sat to Isabella's left, he took her hand in his.

"When did Gretchen get here?" He asked quietly.

"About an hour ago," Isabella replied.

"She didn't go home did she?"

"Nope, she's too concerned about- Did you manage to get a hold of him?"

"Yeah, he'll be here as soon as he can."

"Okay."

"Is it just me or is Gretchen twitching?"

"Yeah she is. She only does that when she's under high amounts of stress, which means her sanity might be close to cracking. Point of Fact she can keep it under control when she's awake."

"How do you-"

"She's my best friend Phineas, she knows all of my deep dark secrets and I know hers."

Before Phineas could ask anything else, three other women came into the waiting room. Gretchen jerked upright, and stopped twitching, the instant she heard the footsteps. Milly Brown, Holly Horowitz and Katie Allen shifted nervously as they took seats in the only open seats in the room.

"Whoa called in the troops?" Ginger said quietly.

"I did, called Gret first though, the old chain of command," Isabella responded.

"Yeah except Adyson- What the hell was she thinking? Going in without back-up, that's a damn rookie move! She's been with them for four years now, she knows the fucking protocol," Gretchen commented, anger surging in her voice as an overspill of stress and worry.

The other women and Phineas just looked at the chestnut haired woman, whom was still the shortest out of the former Fireside Girls, but not by too much anymore. While Gretchen muttered incoherently in German, Ginger glanced down at the clipboard again. She decided to wait a few moments while Gretchen simmered a bit from her outburst. Out of all of them Gretchen would be able to understand what she was about to say. Ginger quickly whispered everything about Adyson's condition into the Germanic woman's ear.

_"Verdammt das ist nicht gut,"_ Gretchen stated as she stood up and started pacing the floor.

Isabella's grip on Phineas' hand tightened. Gretchen had a tendency to slip into German under different circumstances. Isabella would slip into Spanish. Since Isabella and Adyson had taken German in Middle and High School they have recognized several statements which Gretchen would make upon occasion and would be able to carry on a full conversation in the language.

_"¿Es realmente tan bueno?"_ She asked quietly.

_"Es scheint zu sein, vor allem, wo sie erschossen wurden."_

_"¿Qué cree usted que son sus posibilidades?"_

_"Isabella glauben Sie wirklich wollen, dass ich Ihnen eine Statistik? Ich habe Leute gesehen, die Toten mit den Verletzungen Adyson erhalten hat. Ich weiß wirklich nicht wollen, dass die Statistik erinnern, wäre es zu schmerzhaft."_

Isabella thought for a moment before she asked, "The statistics are really that bad?"

"Yeah, you are better off not knowing."

Given the expression on Gretchen's face, Isabella decided not to push it. The other four women had just listened to the banter of German and Spanish. They were relieved when the conversation finally dropped back into English. Both Gretchen and Isabella's shoulders were sagging. They had known Adyson longer than any of the other women.

The six former Fireside Girls felt like the had been transported to the past. The only difference in between the last time and this time, was that one, Phineas was with them and two they are adults now. It struck Milly as eerie that they are sitting in the exact same spots that they were back then. Back then Gretchen and Ginger were already taking their College classes. Ten years between now and then.

"Chief? What do we do now?" Katie inquired.

"The only thing we can do, wait," Isabella replied.

"I have to make a quick call to my mother, check in on the girls," Gretchen said, her voice an almost whisper.

"Phineas did you call Mrs. Van Stomm?" Isabella inquired as Gretchen went outside to place her call.

"Yeah, She knows and has their two kids," Phineas replied softly.

"Ferb is going to be picking up Buford from the Airport. My mom said that she'll be fine watching the girls for us," Gretchen stated, directing her statement at Isabella.

When Gretchen sat down on Isabella's right again, it seemed as if the group had just watched a train get plowed into by an airplane. Ginger had gone on her rounds to keep busy. Holly. Milly and Katie were playing cat's cradle of all things to keep their minds busy. Isabella and Gretchen were mutely watching over the others, corresponding back and forth using Morse code. Most of the Morse code was about other things, like the kids or their work, but avoiding the case Gretchen was working on for legal issues, and other things, anything but Adyson.

**_Okay So you finally got to know who was hospitalized. This chapter takes place right after Chapter 2 of Strung Out._**

**_Translation Notes_**

_Damn it, this isn't good- Gretchen_

**_The banter between Gretchen and Isabella was German and Spanish._**

_Is it really not that good?- Isabella_

_It doesn't seem to be, especially where she got shot- Gretchen_

_What do you think her chances are?- Isabella_

_Isabella do you really want me to give you a statistic? I have seen people dead with the injuries Adyson has received. I don't want to remember that statistic, it would be too painful. - Gretchen_


	3. Chapter 3

Buford Van Stomm was sitting quietly in Adyson's hospital room. Everyone except Ferb and Gretchen had left at a gentle insistence from Buford. Ginger had informed Buford that if he needed anything, that he shouldn't hesitate to ask the nurses down that hall. Adyson was part of the FBI Homicide Unit working with the Danville Police Department. Buford glanced up at the pair, and noted the same haggard look on their faces, that Adyson had the day before. Buford couldn't help but give a small chuckle at the sight of the two.

"Bean Pole you have a keeper, and so do I. I hope to God that I don't lose her," Buford murmured as he too succumbed to sleep.

The next morning bright green eyes opened to find the sheer whiteness of the hospital walls. Adyson Van Stomm looked around the room. She saw that three of the chairs had been slept in. A heart rate monitor and an IV was attached to her. She heard someone enter the room quietly.

"You're awake," Gretchen said quietly and her voice was shaky.

"What happened Gret?" Adyson asked as she laid back. wincing as she did so.

"You were shot, It was stupid of them to put you on the search squad," Gretchen stated quietly.

"Did they find the gun?" Adyson inquired, dropping all sarcasm and joking from her voice.

"Yes, but it was a black market gun. No serial number, and nothing on the data bank for registered guns," undertones of anger could be heard in the smaller woman's voice

"Let me guess no fingerprints either,"Adyson asked with a slight scowl.

"Yeah," Adyson could now hear the anger in her friend's voice being subdued by the exhaustion that Gretchen was causing herself over this stupid case.

Gretchen had walked over to the window by this time. Adyson was able to read in her body language that she was relieved that she (Adyson) was alive but something was bugging the former Second in Command.

"Gret what's wrong?"

"Where the bullets have struck. The thing is the only times I have seen bullet wounds like that is on cadavers," Gretchen answered with a frown.

"It's really that bad?" The question was asked with full interest.

"Yeah, with luck, you'll be able to be back on patrol in a couple of months," was the quick reply as if Gretchen didn't want to be questioned for this.

"And if I am not so lucky?" Adyson inquired with a slight hesitation.

"Nine months to a year and a half," Gretchen answered quickly yet again.

"That is fucking insane!" Adyson yelped.

"Well it's better than you being in the Autopsy room," Gretchen snapped at Adyson.

This statement struck Adyson speechless. This was one of the few times that Gretchen had actually snapped at her. Adyson stared at Gretchen, the tone of voice Gretchen was using was one very similar to the one she used on people who had been involved in drive-by shooting or a fire fight.

Buford returned to the room and was overjoyed to see Adyson awake. Gretchen bid the two farewell and said she would be back in her lunch break.

"She looks like crap," Adyson mused.

"Well to fair Ads, so do you. You and her have been working the same case since it fell into your laps a few months ago," Buford commented.

"Still she looks worse for wear and she's only twenty-six," Adyson replied.

"She's twenty-six? I honestly thought she was younger than that," Buford said in surprise.

"Yeah, her birthday is August 27th, Izzy's is May 22nd(1),she always was small for her age," Adyson stated.

"Wow do you think they'll get the guy?" Buford inquired.

"The Forensic team is very good at what they do, I'm sure they will," Adyson commented.

"What about Short Stuff?" Buford inquired referring to Gretchen.

"She'll be fine,I hope. She has that freaked-out stressed look in her eyes," Adyson said softly.

"I noticed. It's like a wild animal caught in a trap," Buford said thoughtfully.

"She'll be fine. Nine months to a year and a half...Damn it, when I get my hands on the rat bastard, I'm going to kill him," Adyson started out softly and grew to a menacing growl.

"Short Stuff and her Squints are good at what they do," Buford said gruffly.  
"I don't think it's a good idea to call Gretchen a squint. You may not know this but despite her size she can take down a guy two to three times bigger than herself," Adyson said as she put a hand on Bufords arm.

"Whoa," was all Buford could reply.

**Geez, took me forever to write this, I was trying to get the right age for Gretchen and her and Ferb's two kids whom were mentioned in chapter 2 of Strung Out.**

1. The reason why I chose these dates is because they are they are special to me, not going to elaborate further.


End file.
